


Full Circle

by castronomicalmistakes



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Multi, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:00:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 20,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23985694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/castronomicalmistakes/pseuds/castronomicalmistakes
Summary: Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewie, and BB-8 are on a mission to take down the dregs of the First Order, sent to a remote planet where there may or may not be First Order activity, all while Rey, Finn, and Poe are pining over each other and wondering, who loves who?
Relationships: Finn/Rey (Star Wars), Poe Dameron/Finn, Poe Dameron/Finn/Rey, Poe Dameron/Rey
Comments: 15
Kudos: 56





	Full Circle

**Author's Note:**

> Please note no one edited this but me, sorry if I left any mistakes!

There was a soft wind in the air on Aravat tonight. Finn lifted his head to the night sky, filled with millions of stars that hung bright in cloudless darkness, and smiled. He didn’t spend a lot of time in space these days. Sure, they flew the Millenium Falcon from planet to planet, but he was usually sleeping through hyperspace while Poe or Rey flew them to their next mission. Taking down the remnants of the First Order was a lengthy, complicated process. He’d known it would be. But sometimes he missed the stars and the long emptiness of space.

Aravat was a grasslands planet. Huge open fields covered most of the continents, with only a small chain of mountains here or there, and the open space had led to the development (and then extinction of) enormous creatures whose bones littered the grassy landscape. It was like nothing he had ever imagined, something he found himself thinking everywhere they went. The planets of the galaxy were varied and exciting, with new smells and new foods and millions of people who would never know what he, Rey, and Poe Dameron had done for them. What Rey had done for them. 

She was different now. Not in an obvious way; Rey had remained strong, resilient, and she was still wild in the way a life on Jakku had shaped her to be. But there was something about her, something that made Finn both in awe of her and a little frightened. Rey was powerful. He knew Poe could sense it too, even though he wasn’t “force sensitive” like Leia had told Finn he was. Finn had agreed to do meditations with Rey, but still wasn’t able to _connect_ to it like she had. Maybe if Luke Skywalker were still alive, his training would be easier. But Finn didn’t think he wanted to be a Jedi; he wanted to be knowledgeable and skilled, certainly, but without having to go through all the rock lifting and building his own lightsaber. Finn was tired of weapons these days.

So was Poe. He’d noticed the other man had stopped carrying a blaster around when they were on the Falcon or had been camped somewhere for more than a few days. Poe acted like his same old self, but Finn could tell there were walls, now. A lot of Poe’s friends had died in the final assault. He wasn’t as boyish or smarmy, though Poe certainly wasn’t very serious, and he was more hesitant around strangers; even his relationships with Finn and Rey had become strained despite his consistent flirtations. Finn still wasn’t sure what to make of that.

No matter how long he thought about it, Finn also couldn’t figure out what the First Order wanted _here_ , on this barely civilized planet. They’d followed scraps of communication dug out of the damaged drives of First Order wreckage, and the trail had led them to this quiet place, one with no cities to speak of and towns that were few and far between. They’d been camped out on the edge of a small town, sleeping in the Falcon for the last three days, waiting until the locals had become less wary so they could gently probe about the First Order or recent visitors to the planet. The Millennium Falcon had taken a small beating in an asteroid belt that had caught them off guard, and both Poe and Rey had been working on repairs in their spare time. They were fairly certain they’d landed near where the First Order was supposed to be, but they’d come here based on an incomplete set of coordinates. For all Finn knew, the First Order didn’t have an outpost here at all, it was long abandoned, or on the other side of the planet completely. He sighed, the sound of his breath lost to the wind of the night.

Chewie let out a series of growls at him from the ramp of the Falcon. Finn’s Wookie still wasn’t great, much to Chewbacca’s frustration, but he understood enough. Rey wanted something. He walked up the ramp, patting Chewie on the arm as he passed, and followed the sounds of coolant hissing and metal tools against the metal of the Millennium Falcon until he found her levitating near the ceiling, a wrench in her mouth and a furrow on her brow.

“Yeah, Rey?” he asked. Without looking at him, she reached her hand back toward him. He didn’t know what that meant, so Finn slowly reached up and put his hand in hers. She slapped it away and made the “give it to me” gesture. “Rey, what?” he asked. 

She leaned her head back, looking at him upside down. “Didn’t Chewie ask you where you put the wrench you borrowed yesterday?”

“All I understood was ‘Rey’ and ‘needs’,” he admitted, sticking his hands in his pockets. Rey’s eyes crinkled as she smiled. Finn liked that. 

“You need Wookie lessons,” Rey told him for the hundredth time, lowering herself to the ground with a slight wobble. Finn reached out to steady her. Her use of the Force was incredible, but he knew she was tired. They all were. Four months of missions without a break had taken a toll on each of them, in different ways. Rey wasn’t sleeping much, still haunted by nightmares of Palpatine and Han Solo’s death. Poe was quieter, sleeping enough for all of them. And Finn? Well, he was somehow more desperate. He reached for Rey and Poe whenever he could; a hand on the shoulder, a nudge of the elbow, leaning against one of them when they sat around a campfire. Chewie made campfires a lot, these days. Finn wondered what his home planet was like, and what it was that made the Wookie sit out beneath the stars for hours after the three of them went to sleep each night. He wondered how much sleep Wookies needed.

“I’m _trying_ to learn _,_ ” he said with exasperation. “But Chewie won’t talk any slower!” 

“He’s a grumpy old man,” Poe interjected, coming around the corner. Poe leaned against the wall, and Finn lifted an eyebrow.

“Better not let him hear you say that,” Finn warned. “I heard he rips people’s arms off.” 

Chewie’s growled response came echoing down the hallway. Poe and Rey both laughed.

“He says he only did that once,” Poe translated. 

Finn huffed. “Sure, like _once_ isn’t enough.” 

Rey looked at him expectantly. Finn sighed. He wished she’d take a minute to breathe instead of constantly working. 

“I’m not sure where I left it,” he lied. “Ask BB-8.” 

“You still can’t understand him either,” Poe said.

Finn turned to face him and crossed his arms. “How am I supposed to learn a series of random beeps, huh? How?!” 

Rey elbowed him in the arm. “They’re not random, you’re just not _listening_.” She turned and started walking down the hall. “Anybody else hungry?” 

“You’re _always_ hungry,” Finn and Poe called after her at the same time. They smiled at each other with a knowing look and followed her to the small kitchen.

* * *

They agreed to make their first trip to town the next morning. The small suns were warm and bright, two in the east and one in the west. Chewie stayed behind to guard the Falcon, and Rey led the way to town. She was frustrated. No matter how much she tried to sleep, meditate, or drink the pre-packed liquids with stimulants in them, she was still _tired_. But despite how tired she was, she couldn’t stop herself from finding things to do. Even with the asteroid encounter (which she still blamed Poe for _entirely_ ,) the Falcon was in the best shape it had been for a long time. She and Poe worked brilliantly together. He wasn’t as good at fixing things as she was, but he’d flown enough ships to make suggestions they could make reality, and he knew his way around a toolbox. She also knew he watched her slip ration bars into her pockets, which she was hiding here and there, but he never mentioned it, and she was grateful to him. Rey never wanted to be hungry again. Poe had explained that the Resistance would resupply them or provide credits to buy whatever they needed, but he understood enough to let her do it anyway. She wasn’t sure if Poe had experienced real hunger or near starvation, but he had experienced war, and he knew there were some things that would never leave a person. Rey had noticed he did funny things, too. Poe left stuff _everywhere_. Tools, clothes, books, datapads, all scattered about the Falcon, like if something happened, he wanted them to see those things and think of him. Remember him. She wondered, sometimes, if he wished he had died instead of so many of his friends. She wondered how often he thought of them, or if he wanted to talk about them. She was too scared to ask.

With her staff in hand and her lightsaber hidden under the folds of her shirt, she nodded at the first person they came across. She didn’t recognize the species, but they were short, stout people with a lot of hair and tapered, pointed ears. Rey hoped they spoke Basic.

“Hello,” she said warmly. The alien looked at them warily, but nodded back a greeting. “Do you have a place we could do some trading?” 

The alien replied in a language that sounded a little familiar, but ultimately one that Rey didn’t recognize, and she sighed inwardly. She wondered if they’d be able to get any information from them at all when Poe answered back in the same language, though his speech was somewhat halted.

Perking up, the alien replied to Poe and pointed, and Poe replied and inclined his head in thanks.

“What are they?” Finn asked.

Poe turned to them as the alien walked away. “They’re Bothans. Or, some mixed-race version of Bothans, I don’t remember them having hooves. I spent some time with a few Bothan traders a long time ago. Bothese helped shape Basic, so once you’ve got the fundamentals down, it’s pretty easy.” 

“Nice going, Poe,” Finn said, slapping Poe lightly on the shoulder. Rey noticed he did that a lot. Little touches here and there, like he was worried Rey and Poe were going to slip away from him. The war that still wasn’t over hovered around them, each with their own little ghosts.

It took an entire morning and afternoon of exploring the small town and talking to anyone who was willing to speak to them to determine that the last time they’d had visitors, it had been traders who came and left within a few days. This was looking more and more like a dead end. Disappointed and exhausted, Rey was about to suggest they head back to the ship when she glanced in the window of the shop they were walking past. She stopped. Hanging in the window were the most beautiful, delicate little glass figures. Trees, animals, tiny planets, flowers, and more. She was transfixed. Rey had never imagined such enchanting little things. Things that only existed to be beautiful. Without a second thought, Rey put her staff in Finn’s hand and went into the shop, leaving Poe and Finn out in the street, staring after her in confusion. 

She walked around quietly, examining the sculptures intensely, taking in the fragile details, wanting nothing more than to touch them, but afraid she would break them. On the fringes of her awareness, she knew the shopkeeper was watching her as she examined each and every elegant little sculpture. Toward the back, there were bigger pieces; a waterfall with a hidden chamber for a lightbulb that made the water glow, a tree that had a small hinge, opening to reveal it was a house complete with tiny furniture and little creatures she didn’t recognize going about their business. Rey had never seen anything so extraordinary. 

* * *

Poe stood beside Finn and they watched Rey through the window of the small shop. He wondered how a town that had barely more than fifteen buildings could have an artisan so skilled. Where did they get the materials? Production of glass wasn’t terribly complicated, but it required a lot of heat, which required a lot of material to burn, and a planet like this didn’t have a lot of trees to spare. Wood was likely gathered in the mountains and used primarily for furniture and tools. The buildings were made out of bricks, he guessed with clay gathered from a nearby river. So where did the glass, the vibrant, beautifully colored glass, actually come from? He wondered if there was a larger city somewhere near an ocean, and these people traded with them. He’d have to double check the scans of the planet they’d taken with the Falcon before they landed here.

He moved to go into the shop to get Rey when Finn gently reached out and held his arm. Poe looked at him, the question of “why not?” written on his face.

Finn nodded in Rey’s direction, his eyes never moving from her figure behind the glass window of the shop. “Let her look,” was all he said. Poe thought he understood. After the celebrations and initial fanfare of the defeat of the First Order had ended, they’d all gone back to work, the reality of how the galaxy was left in pieces hitting like a slap in the face. The war had made it harder for all of them to see beauty in the world, and maybe Rey needed something like this. The circles under her eyes had been hard to miss lately, and he wondered what she thought about when she couldn’t sleep, what she used to distract herself. Poe didn’t think Rey had too many good memories to fall back on. Life on Jakku had made her into a hard, wild woman, but despite that, Rey had remained passionate and kind. Poe admired her for that. Just like he admired Finn for trying to keep everyone afloat. Finn brought Rey extra protein packs, made sure she always had water on hand, and sat with her while she did repairs, handing her tool after tool without complaint. He even tried to take care of Chewie, oiling the leather of Chewbacca’s bag and organizing the stash of crossbow bolts the Wookie constantly left heaped in the armory. Finn also picked up after Poe, doing his laundry and making sure the small bots that kept the walls and floors clean got into his room, all the while respecting Poe’s space and never entering the room himself. Poe didn’t know if it was old habits, having been a part of the janitorial services of the Starkiller base, or if it was Finn’s way of showing that he cared. He thought maybe it was both. What did Finn do to take care of himself?

He liked that Finn let his hand rest on Poe’s arm while they waited, his grip gentle but sure. He leaned into the touch, so Finn’s arm didn’t have to stretch so far, and they waited for another twenty minutes or so while Rey slowly and intently worked her way through the shop. When she finally emerged, it was with a small, cloth bag.

“Whatcha got there, Rey?” Finn asked.

She tucked it into her shirt. “It’s mine,” she said. And that was it. Finn nodded like that was a perfectly reasonable response, but Poe wanted to know what it was. He’d grown up in a home where everyone shared everything from chores to toys to clothes, taking cousin’s hand me downs and giving up his own to the neighbors. The small community had taken care of each other, and he’d liked that. Poe had missed it, but less so now that he was traveling with Finn, Rey, and Chewie. Maybe he’d ask her about it later, once she’d had some time to enjoy the figurine for herself.

Rey clicked on the small communicator she removed from her pocket and said, “We’re on our way back, Chewie.” 

A series of growls came back over the device and Rey shook her head as she spoke. “Nope. Nothing.” 

They all felt the defeat of the day as they trudged back toward the Millennium Falcon. Poe wished they’d found something, anything to go on, but no one had seen (or was willing to admit they had seen) anything remotely like the First Order in this town. They walked in a disappointed but companionable silence as the suns set, a dusky pink sky following them to the ship. When they arrived, BB-8 rolled down the ramp to greet them, beeping excitedly in a circle around them. Poe smiled and knelt down.

“Hey, buddy, sorry we took so long.” BB-8 let out a series of beeps and whirs before spinning his head around and speeding back up the ramp. Rey grinned at the droid, running after him.

“What does he want?” Finn asked.

Poe shrugged. “He has something he wants Rey to see.” 

“I hope it’s not like the last time he had a surprise for her,” Finn said with a snort. “We’ll never get the scorch marks off that wall.” 

“He just wanted to help with the repairs,” Poe defended the droid for the hundredth time. “And he learned his lesson.” 

“Sure,” Finn said. “Just like the _last_ time he learned his lesson-” 

Poe slapped Finn on the back to shut him up as he passed him on the ramp. “I thought you said you weren’t going to complain about that anymore, Finn.”

“ _You_ said that,” Finn grumbled.

“You’re right, I did,” Poe said with a smirk, “So why haven’t you stopped?” 

Finn groaned and muttered something Poe couldn’t hear as they went their separate ways in the Falcon. Poe headed to the kitchen to grab a snack before a long, hot shower. He wasn’t worried about using up their water reserves, knowing they’d be able to refill the tank on the planet before they left. 

Once he felt like his skin was ready to melt into the floor, Poe got out of the shower and put on something comfortable. He picked up his datapad and checked his messages, even going so far as to re-read the last one they’d received about this mission, before tossing it on the bed in boredom. Twiddling his thumbs, Poe stared at the ceiling. He lay there all of forty-five seconds before he was up, sliding his feet into a soft pair of slip-ons and walking down the hall. With no destination in mind, Poe found himself wandering, passing Finn’s room, where he saw Finn sitting on a small pillow trying to meditate. He looked miserable. Poe chuckled and kept walking. 

“I heard that!” Finn called after him. 

Poe walked a little faster, the corner of a smile on his face. When he reached Rey’s room, he could see her hunched over on her bed. He leaned on the doorway. “Whatcha got there, kiddo?” 

“I’m not a child,” Rey mumbled. She was about a decade younger than him, he knew, but she was right. Poe wasn’t sure Rey had ever been a child.

“It’s a term of _endearment_ ,” he said. 

At those words, Rey sat up a little, turning her head over her shoulder to face him. “I’m sorry,” she said with a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry I’m not good at sharing.” 

Poe shrugged. “Nobody’s perfect.” 

“I do want to show you, and Finn too,” she said. “But it’s also so nice to think that it’s _mine_.” 

This time he nodded. Rey looked back at what he assumed was the figure in front of her, and then she turned completely around to face him, holding it. “Look,” she said sternly, opening her hands. 

Nestled in Rey’s palms was a small figurine of a Y-wing Starfighter mounted on a shimmering black disc. It didn’t have any of the Resistance’s logos on it, but Poe had seen vehicles just like it. They were great ships; they lasted for years and years without needing serious repair, and they were notoriously reliable (unlike some other Starfighters.) 

He knelt down at the foot of the bed, looking at it, but not reaching for it. The figurine glittered, even in the soft light of her room, and it was beautiful.

“I used to sleep in one of these,” Rey said quietly. “It was the first place I found when I was... on my own. The wreckage of it was so jumbled that nobody else could fit inside. Nobody but me. It was my own little paradise, for a while.”

Poe’s heart cracked. He looked at the woman in front of him, so immensely powerful and still so lonely, trapped behind old walls. Reaching his hand out caused her to flinch, but Poe didn’t touch the little figurine. He let his hand rest on her forearm, and found his thumb gently stroking her wrist. Anything that came out of his mouth now would be a wisecrack or something sarcastic that would go over her head. So he said nothing, and let Rey talk instead. She told him about the parts she’d gotten from deep inside the jumble of metal and how they’d fed her for two whole weeks. Finding the Starfighter was probably what had kept her alive, she thought, because it taught her how to scavenge like most of the other people and creatures on Jakku could not; she would slip through the cracks and find what was hidden inside, like her own little prizes. It had to be a game, because otherwise it was too hard. Scavengers gave up and died out in the desert all the time.

She stopped suddenly and looked at the doorway. “Finn, you don’t have to stand out there,” she said. “Come in.” Poe didn’t find her unnatural awareness so unnerving anymore. Finn appeared when called, his hands in his pockets. He was wearing a thin sleeveless shirt and drawstring sleeping pants, and Poe had to stop himself from staring at Finn’s well muscled arms.

“I felt… I felt something. You’re sad,” Finn said.

Poe hadn’t noticed the small tear falling down her cheek. He’d been staring at the figurine while she spoke, his hand still on her arm, taking in some of the weight she carried. Would she ever be able to unburden herself completely? 

“Look,” she commanded to Finn, the same way she had to Poe a few minutes before. All traces of her sadness were gone, snapped back into the box she kept it in. Poe would never have known she’d been crying at all if the trail of the tear wasn’t still drying on her cheek. 

Unable to ignore her demand, Finn’s eyes went wide as he took in the small figurine. “Wow, Rey! You picked a great one,” he told her. “Look at the little exhaust ports!” Finn excitedly examined the figurine and Rey began to smile as they started discussing the body of the Y-wing and wondering how the artist had been able to make the shapes of it out of the fragile glass. 

Poe wondered how Finn did it. Without trying, just by being himself, Finn could make Rey light up like two suns. Had anyone ever felt like that around him? Standing, Poe quietly tried to make an exit, but Finn caught him by the elbow. “Poe, did you see it?”

“Yeah,” Poe said, looking at Rey. “I saw.” 

* * *

Finn watched as Rey proudly set the little figurine on the side of her desk. BB-8 had wandered in, and she’d explained the tiny Starship to him. He’d beeped something back, which Rey interpreted as “It’s too small to fly anyway,” and rolled out of the room carefully, leaving them both chuckling at the small droid.

“You going to sleep?” Finn asked. 

Rey shrugged. “I’ll try.” 

Finn understood. Rey had spent so many years sleeping alone, on constant alert, the need to defend herself or her things a possibility at any second. He, on the other hand, was accustomed to being surrounded by twenty other Stormtroopers. It was hard to sleep when there wasn’t any noise to tune out. That was why he found it easiest to rest when they were traveling through hyperspace; the Millennium Falcon made plenty of noises then.

“I could wait with you, for a little while, you know, if you want,” he suggested, hoping he didn’t sound as stupid as he felt. 

Rey looked at him for a moment, a question flittering across her face, before deciding something and nodding. “Alright.” 

She laid down and made herself comfortable, and Finn dimmed the lights. He sat on the edge of the bed a foot or so away from her. Finn figured he’d wait until she fell asleep and then wander off to his own bed, and after a while her breathing softened and became steady. He was about to stand up when her hand reached out and her fingers rested on his, curling around them softly. Finn stared at the connection between them. There was something about Rey that made his heart so full, so happy in a way that nothing else in his life ever had before they met. He smiled. Finn would do anything to keep this woman happy and safe. Which, in their current line of work, could be difficult. He eased himself down to lay beside her, just for a minute, to make it easier for her to hold his hand. She did, and even rolled on her side to face him, though her eyes were still closed.

“This is nice,” she murmured in a voice that was not quite asleep. Finn hummed a soft agreement, and before he knew it, he too was asleep, lulled by the sounds of Rey’s quiet breathing and the steady hum of the hibernating ship.

He woke up the next morning to the sound of Poe clearing his throat. Finn's eyes cracked open and he realized Rey was tangled around him, wrapped like a sea creature with tentacles around his midsection and legs. He looked back up at Poe, frozen in place.

With a smile on his face, Poe said, "Oh, is that how it is now?" 

Finn was desperate not to wake Rey as he looked down at her and back at Poe, whispering loudly, "No, you know, it's not like- I mean, we were just sleeping, I didn't even mean to stay all night-" 

"Uh huh," Poe interrupted, his eyes twinkling in a way Finn wished they did more often these days. "And why wasn't I invited?" 

Finn blanched and tried to sit up. "Uh, I mean, I-" 

Laughing, Poe turned and strutted away, leaving Finn blushing furiously, still trapped beneath Rey, who was snoring lightly. He was trying to decide how to best extricate himself when Chewie walked by, looking in and squinting. He growled a few words at Finn, of which he understood two: Rey and kill. Finn nodded in fear, assuming (correctly) that he was being threatened, and Chewie stalked off. He threw himself back down onto Rey's mattress. It was going to be a long day. 

A while later, he found Poe holed up in the data banks corridor, scrubbing a hand over his face. Finn gently set down a hot cup of tea, the dark, spicy flavor Poe loved, and looked at the screen. It was a series of maps of the planet. 

Poe looked at the tea. "Is this your apology gift?" 

"Apology? Apology for what?" Finn asked.

Picking up the cup, Poe sipped the tea. "For not inviting me to your little cuddle session last night." 

A myriad of responses flashed through Finn's head before he gave in. "Yes, I'll make sure to let you know the next time I plan on accidentally falling asleep in Rey's bed," he said with a sigh.

"Good," Poe said with a grin, and Finn knew he'd lost this encounter in whatever little game Poe was playing with him. Or, was Poe being serious? Finn could never tell. Maybe Poe was just messing with him. Or maybe he really _did_ want to cuddle with Rey. Or with Finn. Or with both of them? Figuring other people out was exhausting. It wasn’t something you had to do as a Stormtrooper; you followed orders and part of that was the conditioning of not forming attachments. And without attachments, you didn’t really have to discern what people meant. Orders were orders.

Taking another drink, Poe pointed at the screen. Finn bent down and leaned against him, looking over his shoulder. He smelled nice. He wondered why Poe cared so much about how he looked when it was only the five of them on the ship, but Poe made sure his hair was just the way he liked it every day.

“Are you... smelling my hair?” Poe asked after a few seconds. 

Finn could hear the smirk in the other man’s voice. He self consciously moved his face away from Poe's head an inch or two and said, “No, of course not. What?" He cleared his throat and forced his voice back down to a normal pitch, but over-corrected and said a bit too deeply, "What did you want to show me?”

Poe’s mouth inched upward in a smile, but he didn’t say anything else, pointing to a small section of the map. “We did a full scan of the planet before we landed, right? Well the data was still compiling when we landed, and I only looked at two-thirds of the planet. And then I kinda forgot about it,” he admitted with a shrug. “But then we saw that figurine Rey bought. The base of it, the black stuff, it looked really familiar. So I checked the map again and here, in this last section? There’s large deposits of exonium. It flakes off in thin slices, exactly like the one Rey’s little Y-wing was mounted on.” He looked up at Finn and they both realized just how close their faces were. Finn felt himself flush, and Poe quickly looked back at the screen, continuing, redness creeping up his neck. “And exonium can be turned into fuel, which is what they must have used to power whatever furnaces they smelted the glass in.”

Finn stood up and leaned against the desk, trying to calm his body down while failing to make the same leap in thought that Poe was. "And…?" 

"And how much you wanna bet that's why they came here?” Poe said. “It takes a lot of fuel to power a Starfleet, and why not find backwater planets you can steal it from instead of paying for it?" 

"So we find the exonium, we find the First Order," Finn finished. "Nice work, man!" 

“All thanks to Rey,” Poe said.

“She’s the best,” Finn said without thinking. 

He was embarrassed for a second, but Poe nodded and smiled one of his rarer, true smiles. “She really is, pal.” 

* * *

Rey was happy she’d shown the figurine to Poe and Finn. She was proud of herself. And she was proud of her keepsake, sitting on the desk, glittering in all its tiny glory. There were very few things she’d ever kept just for the sake of having them. One was an emergency part, a rare coupler she’d found deep inside a downed Destroyer, that she’d saved after the time she’d nearly starved to death. She wondered where it was now; she’d left everything behind when she’d abandoned Jakku with Finn. Rey shook her head. That life was long gone. She focused on the life she was living now, one with friends and joy, even in the sadness that came with picking up the pieces of a war. It was her favorite thing about the Resistance. They had taken time to celebrate victories, with parties and rich, extraordinary foods like Rey had never imagined. She loved that even in war, the members of the Resistance found things beautiful, and they were still kind. She loved that they still loved, in the face of so much hate.

She sat with Chewie eating breakfast when BB-8 rolled in. The little droid was excited, beeping almost too fast for her to keep up. It sounded like Poe and Finn had come up with a way to find the First Order. Chewbacca growled something at the droid that neither of them understood (Chewie was terrible about talking with his mouth full,) and Rey stood up, stretching and lifting her arms to the ceiling. BB-8 whirred, letting her know she was wasting time, and she laughed as she followed him down the corridor. She needed to prepare the ship for take-off.

“You ready?” Poe’s voice came through the doorway of the cockpit an hour later.

Rey looked back at him. “Yep!” She noticed how bright his eyes were, the excitement in his step. Poe didn’t handle waiting around well. That was part of what made him such a good pilot; Poe liked to get things done. They were all fairly energetic, though Chewie could sleep for a day and a half after a tough mission, and Rey was accustomed to waiting, whether for water or ration packs. Finn would work until he couldn’t work anymore, because he didn’t know how to stop before he was ready to drop. The idea that he had a limit had been beaten out of him. It was often Poe telling him to slow down for a minute, or Rey making sure he actually sat to eat instead of eating while he managed the programming for the cleaning bots or re-organized the kitchen (again.) Today, they were all happy to be doing something. One less First Order outpost meant one more step toward a free and safe galaxy.

Poe slid into the co-pilot’s seat next to her. At first, they’d fought about who would get to fly the ship, but they had come to an unspoken agreement that they’d simply take turns. Poe had flown them to the planet, so Rey would get to fly now. 

“Take off in thirty seconds,” Rey said over the ship’s speakers. Finn had pointedly let them know that taking off without warning was damn unfair, after he’d fallen and been knocked into walls one too many times. He’d asked for a two minute warning but neither Rey or Poe had managed that part yet. 

She flicked a few switches while Poe double checked the coordinates, and then she announced, “And we’re flying!” over the speakers as she lifted the ship up into the air. It was a nice morning as they flew at a leisurely pace over the surface of the planet. The lush green grasslands were full of life; wild animals traveled in herds that they watched from above, and Rey had to swerve to avoid a flock of humongous birds. Chewie stomped into the cockpit to tell them if they couldn’t fly his ship he’d do it himself before storming off, leaving Poe and Rey quietly trying not to laugh. 

As they were making their final approach, Rey watched the smile on Poe’s face die.

“What?” she asked.

“Cloak us,” he demanded as he stood up to get a better look. Rey did as he asked and slowed the ship down.

“What is it?” 

Poe looked at her seriously. “Trouble.” 

They’d left the ship cloaked as far away from the First Order’s outpost as they could, hiking five miles across the grasslands. Chewbacca had come with them this time, with BB-8 as the ship’s guardian. The droid wouldn’t be able to do much if anyone found the cloaked ship, but he’d let them know it was in trouble. They’d hooked him up to the ship’s long range sensors to give themselves plenty of time to respond to anything the droid noticed.

The four of them were crouched on a rocky outcrop above a huge crevice in the surface of the planet. A canyon that was several miles wide and at least half a mile deep lay before them, with several First Order Stormtroopers and many Bothans.

“Why would the Bothans be helping them?” Rey asked quietly. Finn and Poe both looked at her.

“They’re not helping, Rey,” Finn said gently. “They’ve been enslaved.” 

She felt the anger begin to boil up in her blood, but she used the tactics Luke had shown her to calm herself. Rey needed to stay focused. She could save these people. She _would_ save them. _Focus on the positive outcome you want rather than the negative circumstances you’re in_ , Luke’s voice echoed in her head. 

“We need a plan,” she said.

“We need a plan,” Poe agreed.

Chewie growled softly and Rey patted his arm. “I know, Chewie. We’ll save them.” 

They hiked back to the ship in relative silence. It was midday now, the three suns warm and bright above them, and Rey took in the light. Jakku was still the brightest, hottest place she’d ever been, and she found herself missing the constant warmth at times. When they were on planets like Aravat, she soaked up as much of it as she could, and she stood just outside the Falcon with her eyes closed, drinking up the rays of the suns. 

Finn brushed her shoulder as he passed, walking up the ramp with Chewie, and Poe came up beside her. 

"You'd think after all that time in the desert, you'd be sick of it," he said. 

Rey smiled but didn't open her eyes. "I never knew how much I loved the warmth of the desert until I left," she admitted. "Though I don't know that I'd love it if I had to go back." 

She could feel his eyes on her. "You're like a lizard," he muttered. 

Rey laughed. "A little squirmy one with-" She froze, feeling something through the Force; something was coming. Her eyes snapped open and she looked out, back toward the mine. Poe looked out in the same direction, suddenly concerned. 

"Go start the ship," Rey commanded. “We may be leaving in a hurry.” 

Poe didn't hesitate. He ran up the ramp and headed for the cockpit. Rey took a few steps forward and pulled her lightsaber from it's hidden pocket. 

They came into view. A Bothan was running in their direction desperately, leaving a path in the tall grass, with two Stormtroopers on speeder bikes catching up to them. Rey hurled herself in their direction, crouched as low as she could while running to stay hidden in the grass. When she reached the Bothan, they screamed and tried to avoid her, terrified of her lightsaber. 

"The ship!" Rey yelled, pointing at the Millennium Falcon. "Go to the ship!" 

The Bothan kept screaming and running. Rey held her ground as the speeder bikes approached, crouched low in the grass, waiting. When the first speeder reached her she reached out and ignited her lightsaber, slicing through the side of it, and the bike immediately veered wildly off course, tossing the Stormtrooper violently through the air before crashing into the ground and exploding. The second bike approached slower, more cautious after witnessing the first Trooper's demise, but didn't see Rey hidden in the grass. She took a deep breath and waited with her eyes closed, in tune with the Force. At the perfect moment, Rey leapt high into the air, kicking with a sure foot, knocking the Stormtrooper to the ground and sending the bike skittering off into the distance. 

The Trooper rolled but came up on their feet. They reached for their blaster but Rey pulled it to herself with the Force and tucked it into her belt. The Stormtrooper started to run back toward the mines. Rey chased after them. She heard Chewie bellowing something in the distance, but she didn’t waste time replying. The Stormtrooper was surprisingly fast, but Rey was faster. When she reached them, she charged with her shoulder and sent the Trooper toppling to the ground. She held her lightsaber in a threatening position, but didn’t strike. There was no need to kill.

“Take off your helmet,” she demanded. BB-8 rolled up next to her, beeping furiously. Rey waved the droid off, shushing it.

The Stormtrooper didn’t move, the helmet turning to examine BB-8 before returning to face Rey. “If you’re going to kill me, get it over with.” 

Rey moved the lightsaber close enough that the Stormtrooper would be able to feel the heat radiating off of it. “I said _take off your helmet_.” 

Cautiously, the Stormtrooper reached up and unlatched the bottom of the helmet, prying it off. Rey was somewhat surprised to find it was a woman. She had a muscular neck and a square, sharp face, with brown skin and choppy dark hair. BB-8 beeped curiously and swiveled slightly closer, examining the Stormtrooper, who balked a little at the droid’s proximity to her.

“What now?” the Stormtrooper asked cautiously. 

Reaching into her pocket, Rey pulled out her communicator. “Chewie, please bring me a pair of stun cuffs. Finn, find the other Stormtrooper and see if he’s dead. Poe, cancel the emergency takeoff. The Stormtroopers were chasing a Bothan, and they’re somewhere out here, probably lost.” 

“On it,” Finn said. 

Chewie growled loudly from the base of the ramp and she heard him in the distance.

“You got it, sweetheart,” Poe’s voice answered over the device. 

Rey put it back in her pocket. BB-8 sped off to help Poe, beeping about the landing gear giving them trouble. “I _fixed_ the landing gear!” Rey called after the droid.

“What are you going to do with us?” the Stormtrooper asked.

Rey didn’t know. But there was something about this woman that gave Rey a good feeling, one she didn’t recognize. The Force was trying to tell her something. “I guess we’ll both find out,” she said.

  
  


* * *

It didn’t take long for Poe to follow a winding path through the grass to find the Bothan, huddled down on a riverbank, scooping water with their hands to drink.

“Are you okay?” he asked in Bothese. The Bothan turned in his direction quickly, looking panicked. Poe stopped advancing.

“It’s alright, it’s okay,” he said as soothingly as he could. His Bothese had more or less come back to him after a day of speaking to the Bothans back in town, and he hoped it didn’t sound as stilted now. “I don’t want to hurt you.” 

Taking in the Bothan, Poe noticed a few things. They were malnourished, their hair patchy and thin, and the clothes they wore were ratty and filthy. “How long did they keep you there? Looks like a long time.” 

The Bothan was still frozen in fear, but finally started to look at Poe. “You’re not with the First Order,” they said. 

Poe nodded. “That’s right. Me and my friends have traveled all over the galaxy fighting them. And winning.” He smiled as he said, “I know you probably don’t get much news out here, but the majority of the war is over, and the First Order was defeated. We’re just picking up the pieces.”

“How did you win?” the Bothan asked. Poe smiled. That would have been his first question too.

“First, what’s your name? I’m Commander Poe Dameron, with the New Republic Resistance.” It was nice to call himself Commander again. He’d been the Acting General for a while, but gave up the title after the final battle, when he decided he’d rather be flying a ship than telling other people where to fly theirs.

“I’m Nyir,” the Bothan said. Poe recognized the name as female. 

“Nice to meet you, Nyir. Why don’t you come back with me to my ship? We’ll get you food, real clothes, and maybe you can point out where you came from on a map. I’m sure we can get you home.”  
Nyir’s face fell. “Home is gone,” she said quietly. “They burned the village to the ground when they took us.” 

Poe inwardly cursed the First Order. He cursed them for their savagery, their wanton destruction, and the toll their rampage through the galaxy had taken on the lives of millions.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. He knew nothing he could say would help. “Let’s get you cleaned up.” 

He held out his hand, and the Bothan looked at him for a moment. He knew as well as she did that she had no better option. Nyir could wander the grasslands, hoping to find a village, but Poe knew there were none for a hundred miles. She finally placed her hand in his, and he helped her to her feet. Nyir wavered unsteadily, and he braced her, reaching under her arm to help her as they made their way back to the Millennium Falcon. 

The second Stormtrooper was, in fact alive, but injured. The medical device they had on the ship told them he had a concussion and a fractured leg. Following the instructions it provided, Chewie and Finn had bandaged the Stormtrooper’s leg and kept him awake for the recommended amount of time, placing him in a holding cell with the female Stormtrooper. They were both given a change of clothes, food, and water, but neither seemed interested in talking.

When Poe arrived with Nyir, Chewbacca greeted them on the ramp. Nyir’s eyes went wide. “You have a Wookie!” she exclaimed.

“He’s his own Wookie,” Poe replied. “His name’s Chewbacca.” 

Nyir gave Chewbacca a bow, and the Wookie returned the gesture, somewhat confused, before following them inside and closing the Ramp.

Chewie told Poe that he’d finish preparing the ship for take off since they weren’t sure if the Stormtroopers gave away their location.

“Good idea, Chewie,” Poe said. “You want to fly her to a new spot? I’m going to get Nyir settled in.” 

Rey provided Nyir with some clothes and they sat in the kitchen with Poe while Chewie moved the Millennium Falcon. Nyir started to eat everything they put in front of her with gusto, but Rey put a hand on her arm.

“You have to go slowly,” she said. “Or it will make you sick.” Poe repeated her words in Bothan, knowing that Rey’s advice was from experience. He felt his stomach turn, thinking about the years she’d spent trying desperately not to starve to death. 

He pushed it away, listening as Nyir explained the Bothan’s situation to them. She told them about how a few years ago (or so she thought, no one was sure how long it had been,) the First Order had rounded up every single person in their town and burned the rest to the ground. Even children were put to work in the mine, carrying buckets of ore to and from the adults who mined it. There had been one or two revolts, but they were crushed and anyone involved was murdered. 

Learning things like this put more cracks in Poe’s heart. He was devastated and furious for Nyir and her people, and the only thing that kept him calm while she spoke was knowing that they were going to liberate the Bothans. And then he figured he’d blow up the First Order’s outpost for good measure. 

“How many of you are left?” Rey asked Nyir after Poe translated her story. 

Poe asked Nyir in Bothan, and Nyir shrugged. “Half as many as we were when they took us. Maybe forty.” 

“Forty, she thinks,” Poe told Rey. 

“And how many Troopers?” Rey asked. Poe relayed the question, but Nyir said she didn’t know. The Troopers all looked the same so it was difficult to get a firm count, but there were always at least ten monitoring the mines and five patrolling the outpost’s tower.

“So, fifteen at the least, but based on our experiences with smaller First Order outposts before, most likely twenty or thirty,” Poe told Rey. 

They sat for a moment, thinking, while Nyir continued to eat.

“Maybe we should see if the Stormtroopers are willing to talk yet,” Poe suggested. 

Rey nodded and then asked, “Wait, where’s Finn?” 

They left Nyir in Chewie’s care and headed down to the holding cell. Rey put a hand out and stopped Poe a few feet from the door, and he could now hear Finn talking in a low voice.

“It doesn’t have to be like that,” Finn said. “You don’t owe them anything.”

The female trooper scoffed. “You’re pathetic. Acting like you know anything about us.” 

“Rey,” Poe whispered playfully. “Eavesdropping is wrong.” 

She shushed him and he shrugged. They listened.

Finn sighed. “I used to be FN-2187.” 

“So you’re a traitor,” the female Trooper replied.

“What have they ever done for you that wasn’t for them?” Finn asked. “They ever give you nice things? Throw you a birthday party? Tell you ‘Good job’, or make sure you you were comfortable? No. They stole you from your family as a child, and then they fed you to keep you alive to serve them. They clothed you to protect you, to keep you alive to serve them. They trained you to shoot and kill other people only so you could serve them. They don’t give a Bantha’s ass about you. They only care about what you can do for them. I know you’ve seen them take other Stormtroopers away for reconditioning. I know you know what that means. And I know you’ve noticed that not all of them came back.” 

They heard Finn stand up. “You have a chance, here. A chance to do something good. You can help people instead of killing them. You don’t have to join the Resistance. All I’m asking you to do is give us some information on the outpost. I’ll be back in a little while with your dinner.” 

Poe grabbed Rey by the arm and they scuttled back down the hallway and then they pretended they were walking toward the holding cell. Poe gave Finn a nod as they approached. “Learn anything?” he asked.

Finn sighed and shook his head. “The guy’s still fuzzy because of his concussion. And she’s not interested in betraying the First Order.” 

Poe nodded. “Maybe Rey can do some stuff and get her to talk. You know,” he said wiggling his fingers. “Force stuff.” 

“I would rather avoid a mind probe, if we can,” Rey admitted. 

Finn glared at him. Poe had read the reports General Leia had written about what Rey had told her of Kylo Ren and his abuse of the mind probe on Rey herself. He kicked himself for having mentioned it. 

“Well, maybe Finn can sweet talk her,” he said, plastering a grin on his face and wiggling his eyebrows at Finn. He watched the redness creep up on Finn’s neck with satisfaction as Rey rolled her eyes. Poe shifted his glance to her. “Or you could try sweet talking her, who knows what tickles her fancy.” 

Rey raised a brow at Poe. “I think you’re doing enough sweet talking for all of us.” 

“You know you like it, beautiful,” Poe said, running his fingers along Rey’s arm. 

She pulled her arm away, trying to ignore him, but he could tell she was rattled. “Let’s get back to the problem at hand, hmm?” she asked in a somewhat high voice.

Poe was glad he’d distracted them from his foolish misstep and they moved their conversation to the area of the Falcon designed for relaxing, a small lounge with a few curved sofas around a large table to play holovids and games on. The tables were, more often than not, covered in weapons, maps, or other mission related items, but Poe could tell Finn had been cleaning up again. He knew that meant he’d find a neat pile of his clothes folded up outside the door to his room, and he felt a warm feeling in his chest at the thought of Finn taking care of him.

“Well,” Finn said, “We have the Stormtrooper gear. We could always go in for more information, if they won’t talk. But it’s risky, we don’t have any of their codes.”  
“Everything we do is risky,” Poe argued. 

The three friends deliberated and argued until it was dinner time. Finn, true to his word, brought dinner for the Stormtroopers, but returned shaking his head, indicating that they still weren’t willing to talk. Chewie gave Nyir dinner (and Rey slipped her a few extra protein packs) and showed her to an extra bedroom before he brought dinner for the four of them and joined the conversation, which ended with the decision that they’d try to get more information from the Stormtroopers in the morning, and if that failed they’d try to do some sneaky reconnaissance. They would also have to put in a call to the Resistance. It was standard procedure to have a clean up crew for missions like these; they’d take any captured First Order members and help stabilize any local populations who had experienced hardship. And the Bothans here would certainly need it.

Chewie yawned and ambled off to bed and Rey announced she was going to meditate, leaving Poe and Finn in front of the holo of a First Order base from a previous mission this base was likely similar to. Finn leaned forward and turned it off, and Poe couldn’t help but stare at the dark sliver of skin that peeked out from under Finn’s shirt.

“So,” Finn asked, leaning back against the couch, “What now?” 

Poe put his hands behind his head. “I dunno. You tired?” 

Finn shook his head. 

Thinking, Poe pursed his lips. Then he grinned. “Feel like losing a game of Ban-di?”

That elicited a groan from Finn that made Poe weak in the knees. “I hate that game,” Finn said.

“No you don’t,” Poe teased. “You hate _losing_ it.” 

Finn snorted. “Same thing!” 

Poe inched himself forward, slowly reaching for the controls on the holotable, egging Finn to stop him. Finn pretended like he was ignoring Poe, but when Poe’s fingers were centimetres from the on switch, Finn caved and slapped at his hand. Poe grabbed Finn’s wrist, and then suddenly they were swiping and grabbing at each other, laughing softly and grunting as they shifted positions, fighting for dominance. Before either man knew it, Finn was half on top of Poe and they were both slightly breathless. Finn looked down into Poe’s eyes, then at his lips, pink and flushed and a little chapped, finally raising his gaze back to Poe’s eyes. Poe could see the question on Finn’s face. Did he want this, too?

“Yes,” Poe said hoarsely. 

“Yes,” Finn agreed, nodding. They leaned toward each other slowly, but once their lips touched, the pretense of taking their time vanished. Poe kissed Finn fiercely, reaching up and wrapping his hand around the base of Finn’s neck. He was ready for this; he had imagined it for so long. Finn reached down, sliding his fingers beneath the waistband of Poe’s pants, gripping Poe’s hip with a strong hand. 

Poe Dameron _moaned_ , kissing Finn with more fervor than before, and they tumbled sideways, with Poe now fully laying beneath Finn, who was kissing his way down Poe’s jawline. Poe fleetingly wondered why it had taken them _so long_ to do this. The attraction between them had always been there, with Finn’s easy magnetism drawing Poe in from the moment Finn admitted, _“I need a pilot.”_ Poe had been hesitant to make a move because Finn had seemed so fragile beneath his facade, so broken by the First Order, coming back to life because of Rey. And Poe was sure that Finn was in love with Rey, whether Finn realized it or not. And that thought stopped him. 

Poe pushed at Finn’s chest lightly and Finn backed away, puzzled. Poe’s body screamed at him to drag Finn back down, to finish what they’d started, but he couldn’t.

“What about Rey?” Poe asked quietly. 

Finn sat back on his ankles, though he remained on Poe’s legs, and the small bit of breathing room helped clear Poe’s head a little more, his heartbeat slowing down. 

Rubbing a hand over his face, Finn let out a half sigh, half groan. “I don’t know,” Finn said in a small, quiet voice. “She’s _Rey_ , and she’s amazing, and I lov- I mean, you know, I feel… very strongly for her, but I… I don’t think she feels that way about me.” 

Poe could hear the heartache in Finn’s voice, and he sighed, cursing the universe, knowing what he had to do. He sat up, pulling his legs out from under the other man, causing Finn to nearly fall backward, and then they sat, a few feet apart, looking at each other. 

“You love her,” Poe said after a moment. He knew it was true. He knew Finn knew it, too.

Finn nodded. 

“And have you ever said that to her?” 

“Well, no, but-” 

“Buddy, you gotta tell her,” Poe said, even though it broke his heart to say it. “I think you’ll be surprised.” 

Finn looked confused, happy, and sad, and Poe had to stop himself from reaching out to brush his hand along Finn’s cheek. He stood up and headed for the door.

“Poe,” Finn called after him. 

Poe stopped and turned, sighing. He was ready for this heartbreaking conversation to be over. “Yeah, Finn?” 

And then Finn said something that made Poe’s heart do back flips. “What if I loved you, too?”

It seemed so heartfelt and pure. And Poe wanted to accept Finn’s words so, so badly. But he was sure those words were born of the lust the two men had just been ensconced in together. Finn didn’t look at Poe the way he looked at Rey. Finn didn’t look at anyone the way he looked at Rey.

“Talk to her,” Poe said, hoping he didn’t sound as sad as he felt. And he headed to his room, to lay in bed and agonize over every glorious and painful second of what had just happened.

* * *

Finn found himself staring at the doorway long after Poe had left, confused and hurt. Those few brief moments with Poe had been glorious; Poe was gorgeous, muscular, and as he’d guessed, a _great_ kisser. Finn could have drowned in those kisses, the kisses of a beautiful, kind, compassionate man who had done everything in his power to make the galaxy a safer place. And Finn had never realized it before, but when he’d said those words he’d known. _“What if I loved you, too?”_ He did. He loved Poe. And he was pretty damn sure Poe loved him too. But Poe was right about one thing. What about Rey? 

Over the last year, Finn had tried to make his feelings obvious to Rey. He helped her in every way he could, he kissed her on the cheek every chance he got, and he was always there for her, whether in the kitchen while they were laughing and cooking together, or while running from Stormtrooper blaster fire, hand in hand. He wanted to hold Rey’s hand forever. But he also wanted Poe, wanted Poe to let Finn love him the way he loved Rey. Was it wrong to so desperately love two people? 

He groaned and threw himself down on the couch. It was still warm where Poe had lay beneath him, and Finn nearly whimpered. Unable to stand it, he jumped to his feet. Poe was right, he needed to talk to Rey.

Finn walked as quickly as he could down the corridor to Rey’s room. She was sitting on her bed, hunched over, and he was about to walk in when he heard her let out a stifled sob.

“Rey?” Finn asked quietly. She sobbed again and Finn couldn’t stop himself from hurrying over to her, kneeling by her side, and reaching out, putting one hand on her arm and letting the other rest on her back. “Rey, what’s wrong?”

Her hands were in front of her, clasped around something. With a sinking feeling, Finn reached out and gently lifted up one of her hands. There was the small figurine of the ship, now in several, sharp pieces, and one of Rey’s fingers was bleeding.

“I forgot to put it away, and it must have fallen to the floor when I jerked the ship to avoid those birds,” Rey said quietly. She seemed so small in this moment. Finn had only seen Rey like this once, when she thought she’d killed Chewie. He pushed that out of his mind and let his forehead rest against her shoulder.

“Rey, once we’re done here we can go back,” Finn told her. “We can get another one.” 

She shook her head sadly. “It won’t be the same.” 

Finn reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and wiped a tear off her cheek. “No, it won’t. But Rey, that’s the thing about… things. Things can be replaced. Maybe it won’t be the same, or have the same feelings attached to it, but it will still be pretty and you’ll still love it. It’s much better to lose a thing than a person. And we’re all still here, right?” 

Rey gave him that look, the one where he knew she was working through what he’d said, and then she nodded. She placed the pieces of the ship on the table beside her bed and went to wipe her bloody finger on her shirt. Finn caught her by the wrist.

“Rey, I already get enough blood stains out of your clothes. Let’s go to the medbay.” 

She rolled her eyes but followed him, taking his hand with her unbloodied one. Finn hadn’t realized how often she did that. He looked down at their clasped hands as they walked, wondering if she’d been trying to show him the same thing he’d been trying to show her, but in a way that was perfectly Rey. She’d been more than patient with him while he tried (poorly) to meditate. She used BB-8 to deliver messages to him throughout the day when she was busy repairing the ship. And she never asked him to take care of anything while they were in hyperspace, because that was when he liked to sleep, even though she often doled out tasks to Poe and Chewie. Finn suddenly felt silly. Did Rey actually love him, too? 

They reached the medbay and Rey sat down while Finn grabbed a kit, kneeling in front of her. He cleaned and bandaged the small cut on her finger, and looked up at her with a smile.

“Thank you,” Rey said. She reached out and ran her hand along Finn’s cheek. He leaned into it. “I like when you take care of me.” 

“I’ll always take care of you, Rey,” Finn said, gently squeezing her hand. He meant every word. She smiled then and leaned down, pressing a small, chaste kiss to his lips. Before, he wouldn't have thought much of it. But now he needed to know. He reached for her, taking Rey’s face in his hands as she started to pull away, and brought her lips back to his once again. She let out a little gasp, but moved back toward him eagerly. They kissed softly at first but it steadily became more enthusiastic, until they were both standing and Finn was kissing Rey against the wall, running his hand along her waist.

“I… I didn’t know you wanted this,” Rey said quietly as Finn kissed her neck. 

“Are you kidding?” Finn murmured. “I knew I needed you the first time you grabbed my hand.” 

Rey snorted. “You held _my_ hand, dragging me along like-” 

Finn stopped her with a kiss, grinning against her lips. She would always be Rey, feisty, beautiful, unstoppable Rey, and he loved her for it. They kissed for another minute or so before Rey pushed lightly at Finn’s chest. The gesture set off alarm bells after what had happened with Poe, and he looked at her in concern.

“What?” he asked.

Rey let out a sigh. “What about Poe? I’ve seen the way you look at him. To be honest, I thought you were in love with _him_.” 

Finn let out a strangled sort of sound. He couldn’t win with anyone today. 

“Is this because I wear his jacket?” Finn asked, trying to cover up how transparent Rey was making him feel. 

She smiled. “And, you know, the staring and sighing.” 

“There is no sighing!” Finn argued. 

Rey laughed. “But you admit to the staring.” 

“Well,” Finn stumbled, flustered, “I stare at you, too!” He hadn’t meant to admit that, either. Finn could have kicked himself.

Rey’s eyes did the thing he loved where they crinkled at the corners. “I noticed, I just didn’t understand why. I thought I must have had grease on my face all the time, or something.” 

“Rey,” Finn said helplessly. “You’re _beautiful_.” 

She smiled then, so big and happy it made Finn’s heart sing. He kissed her again, and despite her enthusiasm, she pushed him away again. 

“But you love, Poe.” 

Finn couldn’t lie to her. “Yes,” he conceded. Rey slid out from beneath Finn and sat back down, and Finn let out a growl of frustration. “He… we kissed earlier,” he admitted.

Rey’s eyebrows shot up. “You kissed Poe?” 

Finn nodded.

“And now you’re kissing me?” 

Finn nodded again.

“Well,” Rey said. 

“Yeah,” Finn agreed. There was a look on her face that he didn't understand. He was starting to think maybe he’d made a mistake, but he didn’t actually regret kissing either of them, and he was trying to work through his complex feelings when Rey’s eyes suddenly darted to the doorway. 

“BB-8, you little sneak!” she exclaimed.

The droid slowly rolled into view, and dipped his head in shame. 

Rey put her hands on her hips. “Eavesdropping is _wrong_ ,” she scolded. “Poe said so.” 

“When were you eavesdropping?” Finn asked her. 

Rey ignored him as the droid beeped something at her. 

“Poe’s moping?” she repeated.

Finn sighed. It was his fault. “I’ll go talk to him, I-” 

An alarm pierced the air throughout the Falcon, and Finn immediately put his hands over his ears. BB-8 beeped loudly and whirled out of the room. 

“What did he say?” Finn asked. “What’s happening?” 

Rey scrambled to her feet and ran past Finn as she said, “They found us!” 

  
  


* * *

Rey made it to the cockpit before Poe, hurtling into the chair and preparing the ship for takeoff. She could hear Chewbacca growling something down the hallway and was going to yell a reply when the ship rocked wildly on its feet. They were being fired upon. The ship groaned and Rey heard something metal creak and snap.

“No, no, no,” Rey groaned. “The landing gear!” The Falcon tipped as one of the landing feet collapsed. She heard Chewie yelp and she shrieked as the ship tilted, hanging desperately onto the arm of the pilot’s chair. Rey reached out with one hand and took a deep breath. She used the Force to press the lever up to lower the rest of the landing gear, and the ship fell quickly in the opposite direction as it leveled out, slamming to the ground. She threw herself back into the seat just as Poe stumbled into the room. 

“What the hell is going on?” he shouted.

Rey gestured wildly to the screens. “They’ve found us, they’re shooting at us, and the landing gear failed.”

Poe groaned. “BB-8 was right.” 

“Yep,” Rey lamented, working to get the deflector shield turned on. Poe flicked the switch for the windshield and it opened to reveal an AT-ST in the moonlight.

“Oh, shit,” Poe said. He grabbed the coms and yelled, “Finn, get to the turret!” 

Nyir came flying into the room, terrified, shouting in Bothan. She heard Poe say something in Bothese as he pointed to one of the chairs, and Nyir ran to it and strapped herself in. 

“I’m in!” Finn’s voice crackled over the speakers.

“Shield’s up!” Rey announced. “Strap in!” she yelled into the comms. Rey took the ship up into the air, flying almost straight up and looping back around.

“Start shootin’ anytime, buddy!” Poe shouted back into the handset.

Rey directed the ship in a graceful arc that gave Finn a perfect shot at the AT-ST. He fired, hitting the AT-ST squarely on the side, melting holes in the metal siding. 

“Nice job, guys!” Poe shouted, smiling at Rey. She lived for moments like this, and the wild grin on Poe’s face told her that he did, too. They smiled at each other, that moment feeling like an eternity, and it filled Rey’s heart with joy.

“One more pass, Rey!” Finn said. 

“You got it,” Poe told him. Rey brought the ship around again and Finn fired once more. The AT-ST buckled as mechanics in the body of the machine failed, steam and sparks pouring from the holes Finn had blasted into it.

Finn’s voice whooped over the speakers and Poe reached out, gripping Rey’s shoulder. “Yeah!” Poe shouted. 

Rey flew the ship to the closest forest, which lay at the base of the nearby mountains that connected to the ravine where the mine was. She hoped she’d be able to find a place to hide the ship in the trees far enough from the mine that they were unlikely to be found, but close enough that they wouldn’t have to move the Millennium Falcon again. It took a while, but she finally found the perfect spot; a small clearing. Setting the ship down was a little rough without the landing gear, but after they dropped the last foot to the ground, everything was still once more.

Rey looked at Poe and said, “Now what?” 

The exhilaration and joy of flying faded from his face. Rey hated to watch it go, and wished she hadn’t said anything.

Poe shrugged. “Get some rest and figure it out in the morning. I’ll hook BB-8 up to the long range sensors so we can get a little warning next time something gets close to us.” 

He turned and said something to Nyir in Bothan. She looked rattled, but alright, and said something that made Poe chuckle. Rey wished she knew what it was, and found herself feeling something strange as Poe put his arm around the Bothan and led her back to her room. She wasn’t sure what the feeling was and she pressed it back down, ignoring it. Poe was right. Rey needed some sleep.

Morning came faster than Rey would have liked, and she woke up tired. She’d lain in bed for a long while the night before, thinking about how Finn had kissed her. His lips were soft and his kisses sweet, and if the kissing had gone on much longer she would have pulled his shirt off, having seen the gorgeous chest beneath a few times, and wanting more of it. Rey wanted to put her hands all over him, draw him close and never let him go. She was pleased he wanted the same of her. But Rey didn’t want to keep Finn from Poe, either. She wasn’t surprised their attraction had finally come to fruition; if anything she was happy for Finn. He deserved all the love in the world. 

She sighed, pulled herself out of bed, and got dressed. It was time for her to speak to the Stormtroopers. Finn had gone to check on them after the incident with the AT-ST, but said they were still refusing to talk. He’d also mentioned that the fact that the First Order outpost had only sent a single AT-ST was good news, as it meant there really probably were only twenty or thirty troops stationed there. Larger operations would have sent at least two AT-STs.

Rey munched on a protein bar as she fetched breakfast for the Stormtroopers and headed to the holding cell. She entered to find the two Troopers awake. She pushed their protein bars and waters through the bars and the Stormtroopers took them from her. There was something about the woman the Force was trying to tell Rey that she still didn’t understand. Ever since she’d come aboard the Falcon, Rey had felt it, trying to work out what it was. She often wished things with the Force were a little more straightforward. 

Taking a seat on the bench outside the holding cell, Rey continued to munch on her own protein bar while she waited for the Stormtroopers to eat breakfast. They ate just like Finn used to, mechanically, without really tasting or enjoying the food. Sure, they were just protein bars, but Rey always made sure to ask for the flavors Finn and Poe liked, so she knew they tasted good. She understood, however. Sometimes she forgot to taste food, too. Protein packs on Jakku had always been flavorless or even unpleasant, but she’d learned that when you were truly hungry, it didn’t matter what the food tasted like, and now she’d eat just about anything.

The woman eyed her strangely while she and the male ate. When they were done, they both drank the provided waters and passed the cups back to Rey.

“So,” Rey said. “Are you interested in returning to the outpost?” 

The woman raised a brow. “You’re going to let us go?” 

Rey shook her head. “I asked if you’re interested in returning to the First Order.” 

“Of course,” the man said. “You’re holding us prisoner.” 

At that, Rey nodded. “We are. And if we let you go, you would go back?” 

The Stormtroopers looked at each other. The man gave a tiny shrug and the woman’s face set in a hard line. “We don’t owe you any answers.” 

“So, no,” Rey confirmed. “In which case, it won’t matter if you answer our questions, will it?” 

“We’re not telling you anything,” the man said. 

“Their empire has fallen,” Rey said. “I’ve seen them sacrifice entire platoons of Stormtroopers rather than let you fall into our hands. They would murder you rather than let you go free. We would give you a chance at a new life.” She stood up. “I know it’s not likely you have names,” Rey said. “But I think you should each choose one.” She gave them a little smile. “I’m Rey.” 

The woman looked at Rey for a long moment. “You can call me Tifa.” 

“Tif!” the man scolded. 

_Jackpot_ , Rey thought. If these Stormtroopers were already calling each other by names, it was likely that the hierarchy of the outpost was already deteriorating.

“What, Oro, you wanna go back and work for that idiot again? A maniac who lost control when the First Order fell? We all know it. And if these idiot Resistance fighters want to help us get away, why shouldn’t we let them? That other guy, he was right. The First Order never gave a Bantha’s ass about us.” She looked at Rey. “If you’re really going to let us go, free to live as we please, I’ll help you.” 

“Then you’re a traitor, too,” Oro spat. 

Tifa shrugged. “What do you want to know?” 

An hour later, Poe, Rey, Finn, Chewie, and Tifa (who wore a pair of stun cuffs), sat around the holo table with the same First Order outpost holo before them.

“It’s not exactly like this. It’s smaller,” Tifa confirmed. “There’s twenty of us, plus Captain Gashe, who has a room here,” she pointed to the northwest side of the tower. “And the garrison is here, near the base of the tower, so us Troopers can be close to the prisoners, who are kept in a separate building close to the mine.” 

“Well, it’s not like we can rush the tower,” Finn mused. “There’s only four of us.” 

Chewie growled out a long sentence and Poe nodded. “He says we don’t want to kill anybody if we don’t have to, so we should avoid blowing stuff up.” 

Rey nodded too. They were all tired of death. And these Stormtroopers had likely been stationed here as long as the outpost had existed, which Tifa confirmed was two years, and they had clearly formed attachments to each other. As Finn had proved to them, Stormtroopers were merely people who had been forced into bad circumstances. The conditioning could be undone, and they could live healthy, happy lives. Rey wanted that for them as much as she wanted it for anyone the First Order had harmed. 

“Are there any more AT-STs?” Finn asked.

Tifa nodded. “One, but last I heard it was down for maintenance.” 

“That’s good,” Poe said. Chewie growled in agreement. Poe looked at Tifa. “Can you draw us a map? The basic structure of the ravine, entrances to the tower, that kind of thing?” 

She nodded. “Sure thing.” Tifa wiggled her wrists. “These might have to go, though,” she said, looking at the stun cuffs. 

Chewie let out a menacing growl. Finn smiled. “He says he’ll rip your arms off if you try to run.” 

“Finn, you don’t speak Wookie,” Poe said. Finn glared at him.

“Then what did he say?” Tifa asked warily. 

Poe shrugged. “That he’ll rip your arms off if you try to run.” 

Rey let out a laugh as she reached for Tifa to undo the stun cuffs. The second her fingers touched Tifa’s wrist, something happened. 

Rey found herself standing near a cliff by the treeline of a jungle. She could see a short distance from her two women huddling in front of a child who was holding on to one of the women’s legs. Advancing on the women and child were three Stormtroopers.

“Stop!” Rey screamed, but her voice faded into the wind and no one noticed her. She watched as a Stormtrooper grabbed the first woman and tossed her to the ground. A second Trooper reached for the child. The second woman pushed at the Stormtrooper helplessly, screaming in fear and rage in a language Rey didn’t know. The second Trooper backhanded the woman with an armored arm and she staggered. Rey tried to run to their defense, but it was like she was trapped in quicksand, and her legs refused to move. Helplessly, Rey watched as the second Stormtrooper snatched the child, a crying two or three year old little girl, and stalked back into the jungle. The two women screamed and tried to run after the girl, but the first Stormtrooper shot the first woman and the third Stormtrooper pushed the second woman and she stumbled back, and Rey knew she wouldn’t catch herself, watching helplessly as the second woman fell backward off the cliff.

“No!” Rey shouted, tears streaming down her face. She could hear the child crying in the distance of the jungle, see the tears streaming down the child’s face as her small hand reached out over the Stormtrooper’s shoulder, and then suddenly Rey was back in the Millennium Falcon. She could feel her own tears on her cheeks, hear her own ragged breathing, and her eyes were locked with Tifa’s. The other woman was pale and looked like she might vomit. 

Chewie and Poe were standing with blasters pointed at Tifa, and Finn was shaking her, yelling her name. “Rey! Rey!” 

“I’m fine, Finn,” she gasped. “I’m fine!” She reached up and grabbed Finn’s hand, squeezing it. A little of the fear left his face, but he still stared at her with concern.

“What the hell was that?” Poe yelled.

“What did you _do_ to me?” Tifa demanded as the color slowly returned to her face.

“A Force vision,” Rey said. “We shared a Force vision.” 

“ _She_ can use the Force?!” Poe and Finn shouted at the same time. 

Rey nodded and let Finn wipe the tears from her cheeks. “We know the First Order went around grabbing force sensitive children while they were searching for me,” Rey said. “And so, they took you. And when you weren’t the one they wanted, they sentenced you to a life of servitude. That’s what the Force has been trying to tell me this whole time, I just didn’t understand it.” Rey looked at Tifa sadly. “I’m so sorry. Everything that’s happened to you has been my fault.” 

Poe shook his head and sat next to her. “No, Rey. You are a victim of the First Order just as much as Tifa. They are the ones who stole children from their families, who burned villages and destroyed planets. You worked to _stop_ them. To stop this from happening. And that’s what we’re going to continue to do.” 

Rey looked at Poe and nodded. He reached out and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She turned her head, where Finn still sat holding her hand. There was something about being between these two men, both strong and capable in different ways, that made her feel so safe. So loved. So protected. And she knew that she was strong and capable in her own ways, and that she often protected them, too. It made her so happy, this little family they’d formed. She smiled then, at both of them, to let them know she was okay. Poe stood back up and Finn stopped hovering near her but didn’t let go of her hand.

Rey turned to Tifa, who looked like she might say something, but instead, she paled again, and fainted. Chewie was the closest to her, dropping his blaster to catch her. He laid her gently on the couch.

“Can this mission get any weirder?” Poe asked. 

Finn shot him a look. “You know what General Leia used to say about asking for trouble.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” Poe grumbled. “You get what you ask for.” 

“Well,” Finn said with a sigh, “We still need a plan.”

“Then let’s get to work,” Rey told them.

* * *

When Tifa woke up, they gave her some water and more protein packs and let her rest. Rey explained that such a powerful, initial contact with the Force would be exhausting, and for Tifa, it was probably terrifying as well, considering her connection to the Force had been accidentally thrust upon her by Rey’s own connection to it. After a short recovery, Tifa provided them with the promised map and told them how to turn off the collars that kept the Bothans confined to the mines. This was confirmed by Nyir, who’d told Poe her collar had shorted out, and she’d ripped it off and made a run for it. 

The plan they devised was simple. Poe and Finn would don the Stormtrooper armor and sneak into the ravine. They would lure any Troopers working in the mine to an area where Rey and Chewie would be waiting to detain them, and they’d do that as many times as they could. Once they’d cleared the area, they would sneak into the tower and use bounty hunter grade stun guns Chewie had procured (though he declined to say _when_ or _how_ ,) to take out as many Troopers as they could while looking for Captain Gashe. Once they had the Captain, they’d politely request he tell any remaining Stormtroopers to stand down, and then they’d round up any remaining Troopers and lock them in the prison they’d been keeping the Bothan slaves in. They’d already contacted the Resistance and let them know they’d need clean up and local assistance within twenty-four hours, and a freighter was on its way with a crew and supplies. 

Poe and Finn stood at the base of the Millennium Falcon’s ramp, and Poe began donning the pieces of the Stormtrooper armor. He was nearly done when he realized Finn was still undressed, holding the helmet, staring into the eyes of something he used to be.

“Finn,” Poe said gently, “You don’t have to do this.” 

“No, no, it’s okay,” Finn said. “It’s okay.” He put the helmet down and moved to pick up the chest piece. 

Poe reached out and let his hand rest on Finn’s arm. He wanted to pull Finn close, kiss him softly, and tell him how strong and brave he was. Instead, Poe gave Finn’s arm a squeeze. “You’re not one of them anymore. You’re a good man, Finn. You got this.” 

Finn’s eyes met Poe’s and they looked at each other for a moment. It wasn’t heated; it was soft and warm, and Poe wanted to bask in it. He was a single second from leaning in to kiss Finn when the other man spoke.

“Thanks, Poe,” Finn said quietly, and then he continued gearing up. Poe watched him don the armor with practiced ease, and found himself unsettled and angry. It hadn’t occurred to him that Finn dressing like a Stormtrooper again would be difficult for either of them. The decision had been mostly his, and now he felt like a jackass. Poe wondered if he’d ever stop putting his foot in his mouth. 

“Do you really think this is going to work?” Finn asked.

“It might,” Poe said with a shrug.

Finn sighed. “Really?” 

“No,” Poe admitted. He figured they’d get at most two Stormtroopers to follow them to the trap, and then they’d do what they always ended up doing; run around avoiding blaster fire until they somehow accomplished their goal. He squirmed as he adjusted the chest piece. “Is all the armor this tight?” 

“Yes,” Finn said. 

“How do they ever expect you to have kids?” Poe grumbled, pulling the thigh armor away from his groin.

“They don’t,” Finn said pragmatically. “We’re all sterilized.” 

Poe froze and stared at him. “Finn,” he said softly. “I’m sorry.” 

Finn gave him a strange look. “For what?” 

Poe didn’t get a chance to answer him. Rey and Chewie walked down the ramp out of the Falcon and Chewie let out a few growls.

“Yeah,” Poe said with a sigh. “I guess we’re ready.” 

He and Finn pulled their helmets on, and the four of them began the trek through the small forest to the edge of the ravine. Poe wondered how Finn felt about never being able to have children. He’d never really wanted kids, but knowing that he _could_ have them was, for a reason he couldn’t explain, important to him. Poe recognized that it didn’t make Finn any less virile (he’d felt that when Finn had been on top of him on the couch) but he wondered if it made Finn sad, knowing he’d never make little baby Jedi with Rey. He was itching to know if Finn had actually had a chance to talk with her, but he didn’t know how to ask without sounding like a desperate jerk. And General Organa had taught Poe that sometimes it was best to keep your mouth shut (even though he usually didn’t.) 

“Poe?” Rey called. 

“Hmm? What?” Poe asked, dragged from his thoughts.

Rey gave his helmet a little tap. “Distracted in there?” She smiled at him. The soft light of Aravat’s three suns was sliding through the forest leaves in beams of yellow light, and Rey looked like she was glowing. It was hard to miss how beautiful she was even when she wasn’t expertly flying spaceships or leaping through the air in a way only someone with the Force could. Poe thought Finn was a lucky man.

They reached the edge of the ravine without any trouble. Rey and Chewie found a place to hide, where they would wait with a bag full of stun cuffs. Poe and Finn left them, heading to the edge of the ravine.

“Okay,” Finn said. “Let me do the talking.”

“What,” Poe teased, “Like I can’t talk?” 

“I’m sorry, were you a Stormtrooper before you worked as a smuggler before you joined the Resistance?”

“Who told you that?” Poe asked. What he did with his time before he joined the Resistance wasn’t exactly common knowledge (but it wasn’t too secret, either.) He wondered if Finn thought less of him for having spent time with the spice runners. It wasn’t something he was too proud of; Poe had been young and rash, resenting his mother for spending so much of his childhood with the Resistance instead of with him. But his time with the spice runners had given him all too clear a view on how the First Order operated in the galaxy, and he’d returned to follow in his mother’s footsteps, stepping up to fly for the Resistance.

“Chewie,” Finn replied.

Poe scoffed. “You don’t speak Wookie.” 

“I speak some!” 

Poe laughed. “You know the words for ‘Rey’ and ‘needs’.”

“And I know when he says ‘Poe’! And the phrase ‘rip your arms off’,” Finn argued.

“You know he only says that to freak you out,” Poe told him.

“Well it works,” Finn grumbled.

They reached the ravine without incident, finding a pair of Stormtroopers standing there. They walked up to them, and it was in that moment that Poe realized they’d never come up with a reason for the Stormtroopers to follow them. He was about to say _screw it_ and start shooting, but Finn spoke up.

“We found the missing speeder bikes,” Finn said. “They’ve been disabled, and we need help to carry them back.” 

“Why don’t you use one of the hover loaders?” one of the Stormtroopers asked.

Poe blanched, but Finn was quick on his feet. “It doesn’t fit through the density of the trees. The speeder bikes didn’t fit well, either. Now follow us or I’ll radio the Captain.” 

“Geez, calm down. No need to get that lunatic involved,” the other Stormtrooper said. “Who spit in your stimulant juice?”

“Well?” the first Stormtrooper said expectantly. “Where are the bikes?” 

After that, they successfully lured two more pairs of Stormtroopers out into the woods. Poe was starting to think their plan might actually work when they approached the ravine for the fourth time to find four Stormtroopers blocking the entrance.

“Where are the other perimeter guards?” 

“We went to look for them,” Finn said. “They disappeared.” 

One of the Troopers took a step forward. “What’s your identification number?” 

“It’s Oro, you idiot,” Poe said, hoping they’d buy it.

It was not their lucky day after all. The Stormtrooper pointed his gun at Poe. “Oro’s a foot shorter than you, _idiot_.” 

“Well, no wonder this armor doesn’t fit!” Poe grumbled. He rushed the Stormtrooper, grabbing the blaster and hurling it to the ground. Finn followed suit and started shooting the stun gun, taking out two Troopers. Poe struggled with the first Stormtrooper, as the remaining Stormtrooper turned and hauled ass.

Poe and Finn could hear him over the radio. “Invaders! They’ve taken out the perimeter guard and-” 

That was all he got out before Finn’s stun gun hit him in the shoulder and he slumped to the ground. Poe kicked the first Stormtrooper away from him and hit him in the chest with his own stun gun. He threw off his helmet. “So much for that.” Poe clicked on his communicator. “Rey, Chewie, got four unconscious Troopers next to the ravine. And we’re about to have company.” He started stripping out of the uniform. 

“What are you doing?” Finn asked.

“Finn, the Bothans aren’t going to trust us if we’re dressed like Stormtroopers. We might need their help.” 

Finn nodded and stripped himself of the armor, too. They dragged the four Stormtroopers behind a rocky outcrop, and when Rey and Finn arrived they cuffed the troopers and left them.

“What’s the plan now?” Rey asked. 

“Find Captain Gashe. There should only be eight Stormtroopers left,” Finn said. “Two of us should head to the tower, the other two should find the remaining Troopers.” 

“Okay,” Poe agreed. “Rey, Finn, you two find the Captain. Chewie and I will-” 

That was all he got out before Rey shouted, “RUN!” and the ground beside them exploded with AT-ST fire. Finn and Chewie dove right and Rey grabbed Poe and hurled both of them to the ground the other way. Five Stormtroopers were heading their way, charging in front of the approaching AT-ST.

“Shit!” Poe cursed. “I thought that thing was supposed to be under maintenance!”

Rey shrugged. “I guess they fixed it.” 

“We’ll take care of the Troopers,” Finn yelled.

“We’ll get the AT!” Rey called. 

“Okay, let’s go!” Poe said. Chewie growled back an agreement, and hurled a grenade at the Stormtroopers that exploded in a cloud of smoke.

Rey led Poe into the cloud. He was glad she could lead the way, he assumed using her Force senses. The AT-ST was firing wildly, and she dragged him along by the hand as they dodged it, running around the Stormtroopers in a wide arc, following the steep hill down into the ravine itself. It was thrilling and terrifying, but having her hand around his made Poe feel safe, somehow, and he knew now why Finn was always grabbing it.

They reached the feet of the AT-ST. 

“Keep a lookout!” Rey shouted. Poe nodded and held his stun gun at the ready. Rey closed her eyes and Poe heard her take a deep, centering breath. Her ability to maintain calm in the middle of absolute chaos was always astounding to him. 

A Stormtrooper appeared in the smoke and Poe fired twice, watching the second shot hit with satisfaction. The Trooper hit the ground just as the AT-ST started to make a strange creaking noise. Rey was standing a few feet away from it, her arms stretched in its direction, her eyes closed as she concentrated. Poe heard more metal screaming as it was wrenched sideways through Rey’s use of the Force, and he watched the knees of the AT-ST buckle. It swayed for a single second before the whole cabin tipped and slammed to the ground. Rey didn’t hesitate, grabbing Poe and dragging him past it toward the tower.

“We have to find the Captain!” she shouted. Poe nodded, sending a prayer to anyone or anything that was listening to protect Chewie and Finn.

* * *

Chewie growled something at Finn that he couldn’t hear over the Stormtrooper’s blaster fire and AT-ST shots destroying the earth and rocks near them. He leaned around a rock, firing blindly into the smoke. Chewbacca followed suit, and they continued exchanging fire with the Stormtroopers for a few more minutes, until they heard the unmistakable sounds of the AT-ST hitting the ground.

Finn let out a whoop. He was leaning out as the smoke began to clear, giving him a view of the battlefield at the entrance of the ravine. The Stormtroopers were gone. He heard Chewie let out a howl and turned to find three of the Stormtroopers advancing on them from behind! There must have been another way out of the ravine. Finn cursed himself for not thinking to check Tifa’s map, and he and Chewie took off into the woods, firing back at the Stormtroopers. 

Chewbacca stunned one, who fell to the ground, and the remaining two chased after them. Finn was dodging blaster fire, rushing between trees for a few minutes, when he realized Chewie was no longer near him. He ducked down in a small valley behind a large shrub, hoping the Stormtroopers hadn’t seen him do it. 

“Chewie!” he whispered into his communicator. “Are you okay?” 

A low growl came back over the device. He understood the words “fine”, “ship”, and “stupid”.

“Okay, stay with the ship and fly away if they find you, I’ll-” 

“Drop your weapon,” came the sound of a Stormtrooper’s staticy voice. Finn groaned and peeked over the bush to find the two Stormtroopers facing him with their blasters drawn. He stood up and tossed his stun gun to the ground, knowing he couldn’t take down the two of them before they’d manage to shoot him. They grabbed his communicator, tossed it to the ground, and shot it. His mouth set in a hard line, furious with himself for getting captured. At least Chewie had escaped. All he could do was hope Rey and Poe weren’t in any trouble, and try to figure out how to get out of this. 

The Stormtroopers led him back to the ravine, dragging him roughly down the slope to the bottom. A few other remaining Troopers were rounding up Bothans. They were quiet, scared, and submissive, going where the Stormtroopers directed without resistance. Finn found himself pushed into the throng of them, kicking and fighting the Stormtroopers who wrenched his arms and shoulders as they pushed him. After the last Bothan was driven through two large reinforced doors into the main prison, Finn was shoved in after them, and the door slammed shut.

“Hey!” Finn screamed, banging on the door. “I want to talk to Captain Gashe! Hey!!”

The room was dark for a second before low blue lights flickered to life, casting an eerie glow around the room. It was bare aside from the bunks that lined the walls, and the Bothans began shuffling to their respective areas. They were all as skinny and malnourished as Nyir, each wearing a collar that bound them to this wretched place. Finn was sick to his stomach, not because he was trapped but because this was how it was for the Bothans every single day. Driven in and out of darkness, underfed, and worked to the bone. It made him furious.

He began examining the doorway and walls, looking for anything he could use or manipulate to escape. A hand reached out and landed on his arm. Startled, he looked over to find a tall, thin Bothan looking at him in the dark. They shook their head and spoke in their language. He might not know the language, but he understood: _it’s no use_. Finn felt foolish. Of course they’d tried to get out on their own. Nyir had made a run for it when she’d had the chance, and she’d mentioned rebellions that had been brutally crushed. The idea that these Bothans had resigned themselves to this horrible life of servitude broke his heart. And as he looked around, all he could see were their broken spirits. 

“Don’t worry,” he told them. “We’re going to get you out of here. I’m with the Resistance.” 

No one responded. Without speaking Bothese, how could he tell them they were here to help? That if they failed, more Resistance fighters were on the way? He sighed.

After searching every inch of the prison despite knowing it was no use, Finn slumped against the main doors. He sat there for a time, though in this dim hole it was impossible to tell for how long, until the door gears began whirring. Finn jumped to his feet and stood beside the door, hoping he could get a jump on whoever opened it. But the Stormtroopers were too prepared and Finn quickly found a blaster in his face, and was led away. 

The sunlight was excruciating after so long in the darkness.

“Can I get a visor or something?” Finn asked. “I feel like my eyeballs are going to explode.” 

“Shut up,” one of the Stormtroopers warned, shoving the barrel of his blaster into Finns’s back. 

He didn’t have to endure it for too long, blinking to clear his vision of the light as they entered the base of the tower. He was led down a few corridors, up an elevator, and down another hallway, spending the walk trying to commit as much of the layout to memory as he could. Finally, he was led through an automatic door into an area that looked like an office. Plush furniture, delicate light fixtures, and display cases holding expensive looking glassware and other ornaments were scattered about the red and black room. Finn wondered what this Captain had done to deserve such niceties in a remote outpost for gathering fuel. 

The Stormtroopers waited by the door, holding Finn in place, and after a few seconds a door at the far end of the suite opened up. A tall woman in a grey uniform walked in wearing a long black cape. She had black, curly hair that framed a thin, stern face, and Finn thought she looked somewhat familiar. 

“Sit,” she commanded. The Stormtroopers roughly guided Finn to a soft black sofa, and then she waved them away. “Wait outside.” 

She looked at Finn with round, discerning eyes. “Who are you?” she asked.

Finn scoffed. “Who are _you_?” 

The woman smiled. “I will only remind you once that you are my prisoner. But as a gesture of goodwill I will answer your question first. I am Captain Gashe. Who are you?” 

“Goss,” Finn lied, borrowing the name of a Resistance technician he’d known.

“Goss,” the Captain repeated, rolling the word in her mouth. “That’s distasteful.” 

Finn’s eyebrows shot up and before he could stop himself he said, “That’s rude!” 

Captain Gashe let out an artificial laugh. “What’s _rude_ is your little friends running around my base causing trouble.” 

The news that Rey and Poe were still on the loose was extremely reassuring. Finn tried not to let any of his feelings show in his face. It had been difficult for him to learn how to stop his expressions from giving away everything he was thinking; he’d spent his whole life in a helmet, never worrying about that sort of thing. 

“Well, your Stormtroopers smashed my communicator,” Finn said with a shrug. “Not sure what you think I can do about it.” 

She hummed. “I don’t expect you to do anything.” 

“Oh,” Finn said with a groan. He was such an idiot. He was bait. Bait that neither Rey or Poe would be likely to resist.

“So tell me,” she said. “How did you find us?”

“Seriously, you think I’m just gonna come right out and tell you?” Finn asked. He knew he was pushing his luck, but he’d run out of patience with this mission. Getting captured hadn’t been what he’d wanted today to come to, and there were a lot of things he needed to discuss with Rey, and a lot of things he wanted to discuss with Poe, and he could only do that after they completed this mission. This woman was now a roadblock to Finn’s potential romantic entanglements.

Captain Gashe shrugged, walking forward to sit on the chair across from Finn. “The Allegiant General might be my uncle, but that doesn’t mean I’m anything like him. So I’d rather not bother torturing you if I can help it. Blood stains are horrendous to get out.” 

“Allegiant General… Pryde?” Finn asked with a hint of smugness in his voice. He winced inwardly, realizing he shouldn’t give himself away, but it was too late.

She frowned, not expecting his tone. “Yes.” 

“Ah, so it’s good, old-fashioned nepotism, then,” Finn asked, looking around. He smiled at her. “He’s dead, you know.” Her eyes widened but he didn’t see sadness there, only surprise. “Gee, how long has it been since the First Order communicated with you?” He watched her recoil slightly at his words and knew he’d hit the mark. “They haven’t. You haven’t heard from anybody, and you don’t know what to do.” Finn let out a laugh. “Do the Stormtroopers know? Or are you afraid they’ll all cut and run the minute they hear the First Order was defeated?” 

That earned him an armored glove backhanding him in the face. It was so much more than he was expecting, and the wave of dizziness that followed made him nauseous.

“Do remember that you’re a prisoner,” she said with a sneer. 

* * *

Rey and Poe had made it into the tower without trouble; it seemed all the Stormtroopers had been busy rounding up the Bothans and fending off Chewbacca and Finn. They found the control room by following Tifa’s map. 

“Bingo,” Poe exclaimed. 

They tried the door. It was locked. Poe groaned. 

“Just give me a minute,” Rey said. She yanked open the control panel beside the door and went to work, using her small fingers to reroute the door’s power. Rey was happy to only be shocked once, and after a few minutes, the doors whirred open. They quietly entered the room, and when they determined no one else was inside, they shut the doors and headed to the main control panel.

“What can we do from here?” Rey asked.

“Well first, we’re going to disable their internal communications,” Poe said, flicking a few switches. “And then, we’re going to come over here,” he turned to another screen, “and make sure the satellites can’t send out any calls for help, too.” He snorted. “Not that anyone would come. You made sure of that.” 

He smiled at her then, a huge, gleaming smile that melted Rey’s heart. It was difficult for her to accept praise, but she’d take it from Poe any day. 

It didn’t take long for the Stormtroopers outside to realize they couldn’t radio one another, and while Poe was working on disabling the satellite, the door to the room opened. 

“Hey!” the Stormtrooper yelled, pointing his blaster at them. “Freeze!” 

Rey reached out and used the Force to yank the Stormtrooper’s blaster from their hands. She was getting good at that.

The Stormtrooper watched the gun fly across the room and land in Rey’s open hand. “Oh shit,” they said, and then turned and bolted from the room. 

“He’s gonna bring more trouble,” Poe warned. 

“We were already in trouble,” Rey pointed out. 

Poe shrugged in assent, flicking a few switches. “Aha!” he said. “Here’s the full layout of the base.”

They took a few seconds to study the map. The Captain’s office was on the second floor where Tifa had said it would be, and their quarters on the third. 

“Office first?” she asked.

“Let’s get to it,” Poe agreed. She liked how confident Poe was when they were on a mission. She followed him toward the door before stopping to grab his arm. “They’re right around the corner.” 

Poe turned and quickly scanned the room. “Here,” he said, running over to a small vent. He opened the grate which was just big enough for him to crouch down and squeeze through, and Rey scampered in after him. She pulled the vent grate closed and crawled behind him. She found she couldn’t help but admire the extremely shapely rear end in front of her, and Rey was so distracted that when Poe stopped, she didn’t realize it, and she slammed her forehead right into the meaty part of his ass. 

He looked back at her over his shoulder. “You alright back there?”

“Mmhmm,” Rey squeaked out, embarrassed. 

“I think we’re near the elevator,” Poe said. He struggled to open the vent, but couldn’t get the right purchase on it while kneeling in the cramped space.

“Move,” Rey said. Poe leaned as flat as he could against the side of the vent and she crawled up beside him. She was about to use the Force to shove the vent open when she heard voices. 

“Rey, open it,” Poe said. 

She shushed him and scrambled back, turning to say something, but found herself face to face with and completely pressed up against Poe, and her heartbeat rose even above the being-chased-by-Stormtrooper level. Rey had no trouble at all understanding Finn’s attraction. Poe was not only very good looking, but smart, kind, and sharp as a tack. She thought about what Finn said, that he and Poe had kissed, and she suddenly found herself wondering what it would be like to kiss Poe herself. She imagined the everpresent stubble of his brushing against her skin, his lips pressing against hers, warm and inviting.

“Rey?” Poe whispered. Their eyes locked, and Rey found herself overcome by the quiet love she found there. He was gazing at her with an intensity, one that was both worried and warm, and she watched as his eyes darted from her eyes to her lips and back again. How had she never noticed it before? Had they really been so busy, traipsing across the galaxy, or had she ignored it? She knew in that moment that she needed to know, needed to taste him, and she leaned forward and closed the tiny gap between them, kissing him softly. He froze, and Rey found herself doubting everything she’d thought just seconds before. 

“Oh,” she said, her heart plummeting into her stomach, “I’m sorry. I-” 

“No, no,” Poe interjected quietly, “Don’t be sorry. I just… you know, I thought you loved Finn.” 

Rey raised a brow. “So do you,” she accused.

“Well,” Poe started, but the grandstanding he was building up to dissipated. “Yeah,” he admitted.

“But this could be… nice, too.” Rey said nervously. She didn’t want to screw up the new romance she and Finn had barely begun. But the more she thought about it, the more sure she was that Finn wouldn’t mind. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she thought Finn would be happy for them. Rey wondered how Finn would feel if it wasn’t just the two of them, or Finn and Poe, or Rey and Poe, but if it was the three of them, together. She was starting to realize just how much she wanted that.

“Yeah,” Poe agreed, looking down at Rey’s lips again. “It could be.” 

She kissed him again, more eagerly this time, and he responded in turn, reaching for her as much as he could in the tight space. It was more passionate than chaste, and Rey was enjoying herself immensely until Poe’s elbow hit the wall with a metallic thud, a reminder of the position they were in and what they were supposed to be doing. 

He pulled away with a grin on his face. “We should do this another time,” he said.

“Right,” Rey agreed. “Let’s-” she stopped suddenly. A sharp painful sensation echoed through the Force.

“Finn,” she whispered harshly. 

Poe’s face immediately fell, creasing into worry. “What? What happened?” 

“I don’t know,” Rey told him. “But he’s hurt.” 

She watched as Poe’s expression turned to determination. “Let’s go get our boy.” 

* * *

Poe was still reeling from his encounter with Rey in the ventilation shaft as they entered the elevator. Kissing Rey hadn’t been on the agenda today, but it had happened. And it had been incredible. She was so open and passionate, kissing him without reservation, and Poe was _very_ interested in exploring more of that. They stood in a slightly awkward silence until he heard Rey give out a small laugh, and he looked at her then. 

“What?” he asked. 

Rey shrugged. “This has been a strange day.” She reached out and squeezed his hand. He didn't let go.

“Kinda good, though,” he said a little nervously. Part of him reveled in this new development between them, and part of him was afraid she’d realize she only wanted Finn. He looked back down at their clasped hands and allowed it to reassure him.

“Yeah,” she said. “Good.” 

Her smile was soft and encouraging, and Poe’s heart swelled in his chest. 

The door opened and they walked out into the corridor slowly. Rey pulled out her lightsaber and Poe held his stun gun at the ready. “Finn’s near,” she whispered.

Poe followed Rey down the hallway, marveling at the many uses of the Force. Could she use it to sniff out anyone, or was it because Finn was “force sensitive”? He’d heard General Leia discussing it with him once. Well, _over_ heard. Okay, he’d eavesdropped a little. Poe had been on his way to discuss his newest (in retrospect, foolish) strategies with the General when he’d discovered Finn in her office, sitting across from her with a helpless look on his face.

“Finn,” Leia had said, her voice soft but commanding. “You held off my well-trained son with a lightsaber.” 

“I didn’t _win_ ,” Finn muttered. 

The General chuckled softly. “Winning isn’t everything, you know.” 

“But it helps.” 

Leia hummed in agreement. “Your connection to the Force is just that, Finn: yours. You can explore it at your own pace. I was about your age when I learned of my own connection to the Force. It helped me save my brother, even before I understood what it was or how to use it. The Jedi were nearly gone, then, and there were no teachers for us. I don’t want you to struggle through this; I want you to know that I’ll be here, if you need me.” 

“Thanks, General.” 

Poe missed Leia so much it made his heart ache to think of her. They’d butted heads frequently, anyone in the Resistance could attest to that. But her leadership had changed him, made him a better, smarter man. He would never be able to repay her for her stern kindness. Poe wondered if Finn had ever taken her up on the offer for her help, or if everything he’d learned so far had been from Rey, who was still relatively new to using the Force herself. He wondered how different things would be if Leia were still alive. 

“Are you alright?” Rey asked softly, stopping to look at him.

In his sudden sadness, Poe wanted to say something snarky, but Rey didn’t deserve that. He nodded. “Let’s find Finn.” He wondered if Rey had always been so in tune with his emotions, if it was her continued growth in her use with the Force, or if he was being very obvious about it. He’d have to ask her sometime.

They turned down a long hallway to find a pair of Stormtroopers guarding a door. 

“Ready?” Poe asked. 

Rey nodded, and they charged out into the hallway. Poe fired his stun gun with absolute faith that Rey would redirect any blaster fire with her lightsaber. The Stormtroopers shot at them and she, of course, deflected the shots effortlessly. Poe took down the second Stormtrooper with ease, and the way in was clear.

They stood on either side of the door and Rey nodded to him. Poe pressed the door release and it opened. They charged in only to stop short. At the far end of the room, a woman in the signature gray uniform stood with Finn in handcuffs, a blaster pressed against his chin. The sight filled Poe with immense rage and he suddenly wanted nothing more than to strangle this woman with his bare hands. 

“Calm down,” Rey muttered.

“Stop that!” he shot back. 

“It’s _your_ fault,” she said, her eyes never leaving the Captain.

“Is this really the time for that?!” Finn growled at them from across the room.

“Hey, Finn,” Poe said, giving the other man his signature cocky grin.

“Would all of you _shut up!_ ” Captain Gashe yelled. She dug the barrel of the blaster a little deeper into Finn’s neck, bringing them all back to the seriousness of the moment. Poe kept his stun gun pointed at her.

“So,” she said. “I suppose we’re done here, if the First Order really has collapsed.”

“What will it take for you to return our friend unharmed?” Rey asked.

“Oh, sorry,” she said, moving toward the door at the far end of the room. “He’s coming with me. For insurance,” Captain Gashe replied. “Can’t have you deciding I need to be tried for war crimes or something equally stupid.” 

“Lady, you aren’t getting out of here alive with him,” Poe warned. He was ready to be done with this mission, and once they debriefed he was going to demand a vacation.

“All you rebel morons are the same,” she said rolling her eyes. 

“Not all of us,” Rey warned at the same time Poe let out an indignant, “Hey!” 

“Will you shoot her please?” Finn yelled.

Captain Gashe pulled the blaster from Finn’s throat and fired a warning shot at the ceiling. It was hot enough that even from a few inches away, it left a red welt on Finn’s neck.

“Time to go,” she said. Captain Gashe hurled Finn to the floor and fled the room in an instant. Rey charged after her shouting, “Take care of Finn!” leaving Poe to scramble forward. How was she so _fast?_

He hurried to Finn and unlatched the stun cuffs. Finn threw his arms around Poe’s neck hugging him tightly, and then kissed him with abandon. Poe melted in his arms, relishing the feeling. Finn pulled away after a few seconds. “Let’s help Rey,” he said.

“She doesn’t need it,” Poe told him, standing and holding out a hand to help Finn up.

“I know,” Finn said, taking it. Poe pulled him to his feet. “But let’s help anyway.” 

They ran out the doors to find themselves on a landing platform with a small ship. Rey was standing with her lightsaber still drawn, and in front of her was Captain Gashe, holding her hands up, the blaster at her feet. 

Poe was just about to ask why she surrendered when he saw the Millennium Falcon hovering nearby, Chewie at the helm and BB-8 bobbing in the chair beside him.

“Hell yeah!” Poe shouted, throwing his fist in the air. Chewie waved back.

“I guess the Captain doesn’t know there’s no one in there to fire the turret,” Finn muttered.

“I guess not,” Poe agreed with a grin. 

* * *

It didn’t take long to round up the Stormtroopers with the threat of the Falcon hanging in the air, and in just under an hour, the Bothans had been freed of their collars and both Oro and Captain Gashe had joined the Stormtroopers in the Bothan’s former prison. The crew from the Resistance would be there within a day or so to collect them.

That night, Finn found himself sitting around one of Chewie’s campfires beside Tifa. Rey was coordinating the prisoner transfer with the Resistance crew that was now orbiting the planet, Poe was coordinating the Bothan relocation, and Chewie and BB-8 were working on the Falcon’s landing gear. Tifa was contemplative as she watched the flames of the fire. They were sipping on a local Bothan delicacy that was giving Finn a nice, warm feeling in his chest.

“So,” Finn asked. “Gonna stick around, do some training with Rey?” 

Tifa let out a snort. “Look, I know you all think I have this crazy power, and maybe I do. But I just want to go live a life that doesn’t involve following orders or shooting people.”

“I hear that,” Finn said, leaning his glass toward hers. 

She clinked them together. 

They sat for another few minutes in silence, the crickets of the plains ringing all around them. “Did Rey tell you about the Force vision?” she asked a little quietly.

“No,” Finn said. “Hasn’t been much time to talk lately.” 

Tifa nodded. “I think… I think it was my home planet. Stormtroopers were carrying away a little girl, and I’m sure it was me.”

“What else do you remember?” Finn asked.

“There was a jungle with high cliffs, and the planet had at least two suns that I could see,” she told him. 

“We should look through the Resistance’s databanks, maybe a few options will come up for you to try.” 

She smiled. “Thanks, Finn.” After a moment, she asked, “How’d you get away from the First Order, anyway?” 

They could see Poe approaching in the distance, waving with a smile on his face. Finn let out a small laugh, nodding in Poe’s direction. “I stole a pilot.” 

“I think you stole his heart,” Tifa said, nudging Finn slightly. 

Finn gave her a big grin. “I hope so.” His initial happiness faded as he wondered what he was supposed to do about all of that. He loved Poe, and he loved Rey. He’d kissed Poe, _and_ he’d kissed Rey. He didn’t want either to feel betrayed, jealous, or cheated. Finn didn’t really think he could handle the strain it would put on their friendships if one of them was upset about it. He thought about how Poe had tried to step back, to let Finn and Rey have each other, and how dejected he’d looked in that moment. Finn didn’t want that. He wanted them both. But he didn’t know how to ask.

Tifa stood up stretching. “See you in the morning, Finn.” She clapped him on the shoulder. “And thanks. For helping me see the First Order for what it really is.” He smiled at her, and she turned to go back into the Millennium Falcon. They’d given her a room, rather than making her continue to sleep in the cell, and access to the kitchen in case she got hungry. Finn was glad that she’d be able to live a happy life now. The Resistance was still working on setting up a new government, with representatives from hundreds of planets planning to meet in the near future, so there weren’t hard rules on what was to be done with captured First Order members. Tifa had helped them, turned on the First Order like Finn, and he wanted her to be able to go out and live life the way she wanted to, just like he was. 

Poe approached the campfire and flopped down on the ground next to Finn. “What a couple of days, huh?” he said. Finn watched the yellow light of the fire flicker across Poe’s face. He was the perfect combination of rugged and beautiful, and Finn wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him, this man who had liberated him from a life of servitude and given him a new purpose, this man who had stolen _his_ heart.

“Yeah,” Finn agreed, nodding. “A lot’s happened.”

“Yeah,” Poe repeated. 

They sat in silence for a minute, the tension building between them as they both stared at the fire. Finn desperately wanted to talk to Poe about everything that had happened between him and Poe, and what had happened between Finn and Rey. He was trying to work it out, to find a good way to bring it up, and the frustration within him was building. He decided he’d just come out and say it. 

Finn noticed that Poe looked agitated too, like there was something on his mind, but he wanted to speak first. 

Then, suddenly both men blurted out, “I kissed Rey.” 

“What?” Finn exclaimed, whipping his head to face Poe.

“Finally,” Poe said, clapping his hands together.

“When?” Finn demanded. He was glad Poe was happy for him, but they’d get to that later. Poe had kissed Rey? Finn searched his memories of the last few months, thinking of the warmth and smiles that had grown between the two as they traveled through the galaxy. He hadn’t seen it coming, but in retrospect he thought he understood.

“It sort of happened while we were rescuing you,” Poe admitted.

“You two took the time to _make out_ while I was being held _prisoner?_ ” Finn accused, putting on a show of looking hurt.

Poe elbowed him in the ribs. “Not exactly, we were just… I don’t know, we were stuck in this vent and she was right _there_ and beautiful and… Rey.” 

He didn’t have to explain any more for Finn to understand. Finn thought every person in the galaxy would be a fool not to see Rey for how incredible she was. But Poe’s revelation only made Finn more confused about the whole situation. “So. We kissed,” he said, gesturing between them.

“Uh huh,” Poe agreed.

“And… I kissed Rey,” Finn continued. 

Poe smiled. “Yep.” 

“And you kissed Rey,” he concluded.

“Full circle,” Poe concurred.

Finn threw his hands up. “So where does that leave us?” 

Poe laughed. He put his arm around Finn, pulling him close, and kissed him on the temple. “I think,” he said quietly, “That there’s enough love to go around.” 

The two men turned their faces toward each other, hovering. Poe’s eyes flicked down to Finn’s lips before catching his eyes again. Poe was waiting, Finn realized, for him to agree. “Yes,” he said. “I think there is.” He closed the distance between them, kissing Poe in a way that was both soft and slightly aggressive. He dragged Poe’s bottom lip between his teeth gently, pulling away with a smile, and was about to dive in completely when Rey’s voice came from behind them.

“Oh, is that how it is now?”

They both turned to her, and Finn’s heart sank, afraid that she’d think he was choosing Poe over her. “No, no, it’s- I-” Finn stuttered. 

“So you _weren’t_ asleep that morning I busted you guys sleeping together!” Poe accused, picking up on her use of his exact turn of phrase.

Rey let out a helpless shrug and a small laugh. She walked over to them, but Finn could tell she was nervous. He reached up and took her hand. Finn loved holding Rey’s hand. It made him feel like he could do _anything_.

“Join us?” Finn asked. The two men moved apart slightly, making room for her in the middle of them. 

Finn watched the smile flash across Rey’s face. She looked radiant, beaming as she took her place between them.

“Always,” she said softly. Finn put an arm around her waist, and Poe let his drape over her shoulder, resting his hand at the nape of Finn’s neck. As he looked up at the stars beside the two best people in the galaxy, Finn knew he had never been happier in his entire life.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this because it was the story I wanted to read but couldn't find. I hope you liked it! 
> 
> (Know of similar fics?? Leave me a rec!)


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